FRESH FIELDS STORES GET NEW NAME

AUSTIN, Texas -- Whole Foods Co. here is renaming all of its Fresh Fields stores as Whole Foods Market, the company told SN.

replacing signage at its Fresh Fields stores in the Washington, D.C., market.

"With Whole Foods Market in the news more and more, we want to benefit from a strong recognition of the brand, especially as we approach the fall," said Lee Valkenaar, president, Mid-Atlantic region, in a prepared statement. "Also, people from other parts of the country who are already familiar with Whole Foods Market may move into the Philadelphia area."

The company, which has owned the Fresh Fields stores for six years, had been implementing the changes gradually by placing the Whole Foods name on aprons, carts and shopping bags.